Movie Review: Beauty and the Beast (2017)

Warning: May Contain Spoilers

I was not sure what to think of when I heard that Beauty and the Beast was going to be remade into a live action movie. On the one hand, the live action version can make a movie look more current. On the other hand, they can change a few things up and make it terrible. Take for example, Alice in Wonderland. The cartoon version is great because it had a lot of humor, bright colors, and voice actors that fit with their roles. Then, once the live action version came along, the best elements faded away. The Queen sounded obnoxious rather than hilarious every time she yelled, "Off with their heads!", the actress who played Alice was not a good fit for Alice's part, and the movie went from exciting, lively, and humorous to bland, lifeless, and unamusing. So how did it go for Beauty and the Beast?

Well, it actually was better than I expected. The live action movie definitely had its strengths that made it stay true to the original film. The music (excluding the Beauty and the Beast theme played during the end credits) fit the romantic mood, the talking households still had their charm and humor (especially the singing wardrobe), and Gaston still had the ego that made him easy to root against. However, was it really a good idea to have Gaston kill the Beast with a gun instead of a sword, especially since that Gaston did not even have a gun in the original film? I get that it makes the film look a little more modern, but given the outfits people worn in the castle, it feels unfitting with the classic atmosphere. Even his outfit felt pretty odd, considering he is mostly remembered for his muscles, looks, red shirt, and ego. While it does fit with his status as a prince, it doesn't allow him to stand out from the rest of the "friends and allies."

There is, however, one big issue that dragged the movie down a good notch: Emma Watson. She was not the right choice to play Cinderella's role. In the original film, Belle had a lot of life, energy, and emotion in her character. In the live action remake, however, she lacks all that passion put into Belle's character that makes her stand out. She did not even smile the way Belle did in the original. Not even her singing stood out as it did not bring out all those emotions and energy either, making her fall flat in her delivery. Not only that, but she and Beast lacked good chemistry with each other. When a singing wardrobe is much more memorable than Belle, that is not a good sign for her as a leading character. In other words, it's basically what Alice in Wonderland, the live action version, suffered from.

In the end, the original cartoon version remains as the better version of the two. With its slow and calming music, superior acting, and atmospheric scenes, Beauty and the Beast is a classic worth remembering, but the remake doesn't illustrate that properly. Next time, the producers and director should be more considerate of the leading actress playing a Disney princess to avoid having a mismatch between the character and the actress.

Overall: 6/10. I don't see this remake gaining very positive reception among fans of the classic version, but for what it's worth, it's alright.

Comments

Awesome - VideoGamefan5

That dubbed singing…killed my ears. - TristGamer

This is a great review. - Anonymousxcxc

Decent review. I just would've liked some more detailed explanations, better transitions between each paragraph, and maaybe a plot synopsis. (Staying on topic with the topic sentence would've been good took, though I feel like I'm entering nitpicking territory at this point)

Other than that, great review. I liked how this review was basically a comparison between the original and this version and what changed from the original here. It's the perfect way to review a remake of another movie, and you did a solid job.

My review of this film was horrendous and was easily the worst one I've submitted. It was incomplete, poorly written, contradicted itself at times, and turned out the way it did thanks to school stress. I'm glad somebody actually wrote a decent review of this on TTT. - DCfnaf

I like the points you made! As someone who was in choir for years and had to hard on singing, I was upset with how Emma's voice sounded. I wish they would have hired an actress who could have sung better. - RoseRedFlower